(Author's Note: Please bear with the seemingly tedious descriptions of Buddhism; they're important to the story. Remember, Mugen doesn't know this stuff yet! Besides, I had to do a lot of really difficult research for it. I even bought myself nenju beads. Blue, like Jin's. With 17 beads exactly: for the 4 truths, 5 precepts, and Noble 8! …yeah, I'm a geek.)

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

"There are four things you need to understand."

"Shoot."

"One. In the words of Thomas Hobbes, who was born about a hundred years ago in England, life is solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short."

"I'll buy that."

Mugen, Jin, and Fuu were walking through the town, orienting themselves with their new surroundings. Mugen had Jin's arm around him and was helping him on his way, though Jin occasionally would decide he needed to make a break for it, and walk for a ways before falling over. Fuu trailed behind them. She was beginning to feel like a third wheel. Ever since they discovered they were "kindred spirits," she'd been ignored, outcast… and this was her quest, dammit! But somehow they'd gotten involved in Jin's affairs, and now he and Mugen were closer than brothers. In fact, it was almost like… well, she didn't have any evidence of that. They could just be "Victorian." Although, frankly, she thought their newfound friendship was creepy, regardless of whether it was sexual or not.

"Our lives are naturally painful and chaotic. We are more or less powerless over them."

"Uh-huh."

"Two. The cause of all suffering is directly related to how many worldly burdens you have. Every sin, desire, fault, and ignorance causes suffering. You cannot achieve enlightenment if you are tied down to your worldly burdens."

"Okay," said Mugen, a little more doubtful. It sounded like Jin was telling him stuff was bad. And he'd never known stuff to make him unhappy.

"Three. Suffering can be ended. The end of suffering, the end of the disorder and pain that pervades our lives, is called nirvana."

"Right."

"And four. Nirvana is a destination which can be reached by following a so-called path. And no, it's not a literal path. It's the Noble Eightfold Path. The Noble Eightfold create a lifestyle which leads to nirvana."

"So what are the Noble Eightfold?"

"Right understanding, right thought, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right concentration."

Mugen scoffed and said, "Right on."

"There are five precepts, of which you must commit yourself to at least one."

"What, like laws?"

"No, promises."

"Can't you just… break the promise?"

"It doesn't work like that," said Jin gently. "It's like the beads. An honor system."

"Okay… so what are the five precepts?"

"To refrain from killing or willfully taking a life, stealing or taking anything to which you are not entitled or do not need, sexual misconduct and indulgence, incorrect speech, and any intoxicants which create a loss of self-conscious, since of course all suffering comes from ignorance."

"Are you crazy? I can't stop doing any of those… Geez, even you're guilty of every single one."

Jin frowned. "I try to refrain from incorrect speech."

"Is that why you never talk?"

"Yes. One of the reasons. I don't wish to say anything idle or vulgar."

Mugen looked incredulous, but muttered, "Four, eight, five," under his breath.

"Which one of the precepts would you take?" asked Fuu. The guys turned to look at her; they'd forgotten all about her.

"Oh… I dunno," mumbled Mugen.

"Come on," pressed Fuu. "I want to hear you say you'll try one. It'll be interesting."

"Killing… no… stealing… no… sex, hell, no… that leaves drugs and swearing, huh?"

"You could never stop swearing," said Fuu.

"I'm not giving up drinking! I'd rather stay unenlightened. Getting wasted is a ball…"

"Looks like you have to start speaking nice, then."

"Fuck you."

Fuu smirked and swung her arms a little more. On one hand, it might have been petty to frustrate Mugen. But then, he was frustrating her. And so was Jin, for that matter.

Jin! Mr. Enlightened. Yeah, right. He'd already confessed to them that he was one of the most unenlightened people in the world. He'd broken every single precept, and his whole life apparently revolved around revenge. Not just killing someone, either, but literally torturing him. He acted calm, but Fuu couldn't begin to imagine how much suppressed anger was hidden under there. Fuu wasn't too sure about how these things worked, but she didn't think it was enough to just act polite; you had to be a genuinely kind person in your heart, too. And Jin was someone who was, in a sense, worse than Mugen. At least Mugen was predictable. He would kill and lie and steal and cheat… but he was honest about all of it.

While Fuu considered this, Mugen and Jin walked into the nearest teahouse. There were three low tables set inside and a heavily perfumed fire burning, even though it was the middle of the day. For some reason, though, the place was popular, and they had trouble finding seats. Mugen and Jin squeezed into the most crowded table, ordering drinks for themselves and thrusting themselves into the midst of the conversation. Fuu was forced to find a different table and order her own drink.

"Cold shoulder, huh?"

"What?"

The girl next to Fuu turned and smiled. She had a gentle face, small eyes, and light brown hair. Fuu thought immediately of a doe. Even her kimono was a dark green, earthy and simple, somehow old-fashioned.

"Those guys you came in with. You are with them, right?"

Fuu looked over. Jin was leaning over the table, engrossed in a discussion, probably about Shenji. Mugen was tearing pieces of pork off of skewers like a starved animal.

"Yeah, unfortunately." Fuu sighed. "One is an angsty, suicidal samurai and the other is a criminal who's trying to become enlightened."

"Interesting, interesting," said the girl, nodding. "By the way, I'm Rini."

"I'm Fuu." They smiled. Fuu liked Rini immediately.

"So, how'd the enlightened criminal and the suicidal samurai hook up?"

"Long story," said Fuu with a sigh. "I'm looking for a samurai who smells like sunflowers. But we got sort of sidetracked and now we're looking for one with glasses."

"Maybe if you're lucky, you'll find one who has glasses and smells like sunflowers," suggested Rini.

Fuu sighed and slouched over the table. "Yeah, well…"

"Kind of weird that you're looking for a samurai in glasses."

"What, why?"

"Well, it's not really normal, is it? But he's wearing glasses, over there…" She gestured to Jin. "…and there's another guy who wears glasses here too. What are the chances of finding two in one city? Small world…" She smiled again. Fuu must have looked shocked; she continued talking. "Around here, though, everyone knows about the samurai in glasses. We've just gotten used to him."

"Oh?" asked Fuu politely.

"Yeah, you know, Miyazaki-san. I work for him." She gestured vaguely toward the wall of the teahouse; all Fuu could see was a huge pot of overgrown bamboo.

"Is Miyazaki his last name?"

Rini's eyes widened. "You've never even heard of Miyazaki-san? Everyone knows him! He's only the greatest samurai in the country, and the most powerful man in town. He practically runs the place. If it weren't for him, we'd be a ghost town. He lives up on the hill… I'll show you." She took Fuu's arm and led her over to the bamboo. She pulled back the shoots, revealing a window. And through the window, down the street, there was indeed a small, temple-like house nestled on a hill.

"He has glasses?" pressed Fuu.

"Yes, it's something of his trademark. Well, we don't see him much. He entertains in the city sometimes, the one that's south-west of here, and holes himself up in his house the rest of the time. The town here is sort of beneath him. But he's a good man."

"What's his first name?" demanded Fuu.

Rini looked shocked that Fuu would ask, but answered, "I think it's Benji or something."

Fuu nearly knocked over the table in her rush to grab Jin and Mugen.

"Jin," she whispered. "I met someone who works for—"

She never even finished; Jin got up faster than lightning and crossed half the room before his leg gave out and he fell over with a crash. There was a temporary silence in the teahouse, and then the talk and laughter resumed louder than before. Mugen and Fuu ran after Jin to pull him up and brush him off; by that time, Rini had come over to help too.

They herded her to a table in the back of the room; Jin grilled her mercilessly for information. Most of the things she knew were about what he ate, because she was only a kitchen maid; but she was able to tell them all about his house and its expansive garden, the days he went to the city and the rare occasions he went to temple.

"Tell me," said Jin, leaning forward eagerly. "When he returned from the city, did he only have one eye?"

Rini put a hand to her mouth. "Yes," she squeaked. "No one is supposed to know; but of course a few servants saw it and now everyone in the house knows."

"Did you see it?"

"No; he's been wearing an eye patch. It looks very peculiar under the glasses, but he's so rich, no one would dare say it to him."

"I'll dare," said Jin shortly, standing. "Thank you, Rini. I'm greatly in your debt." He bowed to her and turned to leave. She blushed, not knowing who he was or what he planned to do. Mugen rolled his eyes as he followed, thinking of what a nice piece of ass Jin was giving up.

Later that night, Rini told the cook about the people she'd met in the town. "There was a samurai in glasses, looking for another samurai in glasses. He was very interested in Miyazaki-san. He wasn't from around here."

The cook frowned and sucked her teeth. Later, while she was gossiping with one of the maids, a young servant girl overheard. She took it to the other three girls in the house; and during the course of their loud whispers, it somehow got up to Shenji Miyazaki's personal manservant. Shenji tapped his long fingernails on the table, and quietly gave his instructions. After the manservant had left, Shenji hesitantly turned to face himself in the mirror wall. He moved his glasses aside so he could pull off the eye patch and examine the socket; but it was unchanged, still empty as before.